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Police: Ohio woman cites diet pills in sex abuse

AP
6:41 p.m. EDT July 1, 2013

A woman who says she was on diet pills at the time was indicted on multiple charges, including rape and pandering, for allegedly sexual assaulting her daughter.(Photo: Ilie Victor Oancea, AP Stock Photo)

The 32-year-old was indicted Monday on multiple charges, including rape and pandering. If convicted, she faces life in prison.

She did not yet have an attorney.

The Associated Press is not identifying the woman to protect her daughter's identity.

The woman was arrested at her home in Springboro in southwestern Ohio on June 22 after her boyfriend found five videos of her engaged in graphic sexual acts with her daughter and called police, a police report released Monday said. The girl is under 5 but authorities wouldn't be more specific about her age.

When asked about the videos, the woman said she didn't remember shooting them because she had taken a lot of diet pills that rendered her unconscious, according to the report.

Police who watched the videos say that the woman was conscious and active in the videos, and filmed at least one of them herself.

"She stated that she was sick to her stomach when she saw the videos and would never hurt (her daughter)," according to the report, written by Springboro police Officer Thomas Faulkner.

The woman also told police that she was working for an "online sexting company" and had been asked for more videos of her and her daughter.

The woman's three children are now with their father, Warren County Prosecutor David Fornshell said.

“Clearly somebody engages in this kind of conduct has something wrong with them. The issue is whether she understands the difference between right and wrong, and we believe she did.”

David Fornshell, Warren County prosecutor

Investigators were working to identify anyone who may have paid for the videos or otherwise was involved, he said.

He said that while prosecutors have strong evidence in the case, it may prove to be challenging because the woman's competency to understand the proceedings and assist in her defense may be called into question.

But, he said prosecutors are confident that the woman is competent to stand trial and will aggressively pursue the case.

"It's hard for people to fathom that anyone would do this to a child," he said. "Clearly somebody engages in this kind of conduct has something wrong with them. The issue is whether she understands the difference between right and wrong, and we believe she did."